SOIL SURVEY OF PORTER COUNTY, INDIANA. 15 



Wheat is harvested soon after the hay-maldng season. Self bind- 

 ers are used, and the bundles are shocked in the field; very few farmers 

 stack them. The harvesting of oats follows, the same methods 

 being used as in case of wheat. Thrashing usually has begun by the 

 end of the harvest season. A number of farmers join in a thrasliing 

 "ring" to use one machine and exchange labor. 



Timothy is sometimes thrashed for seed. The second crop of red 

 clover is also cut for seed. 



Ensilage corn is cut shortly before the first heavy frosts. After 

 that some corn, especially that on low land, is cut by hand or with 

 corn binders, and shocked, to be husked or shredded later in the sea- 

 son. A part of the corn is left standing in the field and husked from 

 the row in November or December. 



Stock farming involves many of the methods used on the grain 

 farms, with the additional labor of handling more rough feed, such as 

 straw, corn stover, shredded corn, and ensilage, and of spreading 

 manure from the feed lots over the fields. It also necessitates the 

 use of more land for pasture and hay production. Most of the feed 

 is home grown. On dairy farms there is the labor of feeding and 

 milking from 20 to 50 cows all the year, and the milk is hauled to 

 market or to a shipping point daily. In some cases the milk cans 

 are collected by auto truck, but most farmers live near one or 

 another of the numerous railroads and attend to delivery of milk and 

 return of the empty cans. The growing of corn for ensilage is im- 

 portant on the dairy farms, most of the farmers filling two or three 

 silos each year. 



The 1910 census states that 72 per cent of the farm valuation was 

 in the land, 16.3 per cent in buildings, 2.3 per cent in implements, and 

 9.3 per cent in domestic animals. The average value of all property 

 per farm is given as $10,079. 



The farm dwellings usually are well constructed, and many are 

 thoroughly modern and fitted with most of the conveniences of urban 

 dwellings. Even where the farmhouse is poor the barns and sheds 

 usually are adequate for the needs of the farm. The dairy barns 

 especially are large and well equipped for housing and feeding the 

 cows and handling milk and manure. Improved farm machinery, 

 including drills, corn planters, binders, manure spreaders, etc., is in 

 general use. Automobiles for business and pleasure are fairly com- 

 mon in the county. A large number of steam engines and gasoline 

 tractors are used in the county for thrashing, cutting ensilage, shred- 

 ding corn, plowing, sawing wood, and grinding feed. 



Some of the more common rotations used in Porter County are 

 corn, oats, and timothy; corn, wheat, and timothy; corn, oats, wheat, 

 and clover. On dairy and stock farms the rotations may be varied 

 by using the land as pasture for several years. 



